Newsletter

Scott getting rid of drug control office

TALLAHASSEE (AP)— Governor-elect Rick Scott, who has promised to cut waste in state government, is getting rid of Florida's drug control office.

Bruce Grant, the state's current "drug czar," said "that's a mistake" Wednesday because it signals drug abuse no longer is a priority.

A Scott spokesman told The Miami Herald and St. Petersburg Times that the duties of the four-person office, which now reports directly to the governor, likely will be turned over to the departments of Health and Law Enforcement.

The spokesman, Brian Burgess, said he didn't think the office's demise would lead to "cocaine bales stacking up on the docks of Miami."